Handwriting and the Brain

A few functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies have looked at handwriting, and the results are very interesting. One study, cited in the Wall Street Journal, indicated that children who had received handwriting instruction had neural activity that was “far more enhanced and ‘adult-like’ than in those who had simply looked at letters.”

A 2012 study showed that handwriting training helped recruit areas of the brain used in the development of reading skills. Even just reading handwritten, instead of printed, letters uses different parts of the brain. But it’s not just in brain activation where handwriting makes a difference.

So it’s not just fMRI activation. Writing things out by hand actually seems to better encode them in memory.

Handwriting and Creativity

Okay, so handwriting is good for remembering things, but what does that have to do with creativity? On the neurological side, there’s some evidence for a link between the two. Creative thinking requires the connection of different types of ideas, and handwriting activates multiple areas of the brain in a way that typing doesn’t.

Because creativity is such an abstract concept, it’s difficult to measure or quantify how handwriting might affect it. But there are a number of reasons to believe that handwriting could have an important effect on your creative thoughts. For example, many people use handwriting as a form of meditation, an activity that uniquely affects the brain and has been used to come up with creative ideas for centuries.

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The field of embodied cognition looks at the relationship between the mind and body, and one of the things scholars in this field have looked at is creativity. For example, one study found that fluid arm movements increased creativity (described as “fluid thought”). It’s certainly possible that the fluid movements of handwriting could have a similar effect.

Much of this is speculative, but there’s some historical evidence that might sway skeptics. Many famous authors, for example, wrote out their novels (or at least significant portions of them) by hand. Vladimir Nabokov, for example, wrote in pencil on 3×5-inch index cards. Truman Capote also reportedly only wrote in pencil. Nail Gaiman, Stephen King, Dylan Thomas, John Steinbeck, and J.K. Rowling have all talked about writing by hand.

And while these are obviously very naturally gifted people, it seems like there might be something useful to learn there.

Handwriting and Creative Skills

It’s not just mental creative processes that can benefit from handwriting — there are a number of more immediately practical facets, too. Whether you consider yourself to be a visual artist or not, there’s a benefit to having the fine motor control it takes to turn an idea in your head into one on paper.

Gaining better control of the muscles in your hand and wrist through the exercise of handwriting could help you develop a steady hand. That’s useful in all sorts of creative pursuits, from calligraphy to photography to painting. And no one’s going to be impressed by the handwritten notes, dedications, or signatures you include with your work if they’re unreadable.